Bedtime Stories
by Miss I-Like-Too-Many-Fandoms
Summary: Lin wants her mother to read her a bedtime story. How will Toph react? Will Lin get to find out what happens to the moose-lion cub?


**I suppose the story is really more about Toph, but...oh well. The line between the Legend of Korra and Avatar: The Last Airbender is practically non-existent. I know what they say about assuming, but given the other technologies available in Republic City and the rough timeline given by Bryke, I'm assuming that typewriters exist. It's not that big of a deal, but I'll accept crazy rant flames for it.**

** Avatar: The Last Airbender and Legend of Korra belong to the amazing Mike and Bryan and Nickelodeon. **

It had been dark for sometime when Toph finally left Police Headquarters in downtown Republic City. There were a few lights lining the new boulevard, not that the earth bender could see them, instead she could see the slender metal poles and the metal work below it that fed the poles electricity. Much had changed in the twenty-five years since the end of the Hundred Years War. Industry was booming with the influx of Fire Nation engineers and the mix of brilliant minds in the city. Cabbage Corp emerged twenty years after the arrival of Sozin's Comet, introducing electricity and slowly making it affordable and widespread. The street lights being evidence of the endeavor.

Toph made her way down the boulevard, strolling at a leisurely pace. She had quite the walk ahead of her to the docks that would take her to Air Temple Island, the residence of two of her best friends and their family. Even without conventional sight, Toph took notice of the odd mix of buildings and structures she passed. Republic City was stuck in a place between industrialization and agrarian society. Small vendor stalls were dwarfed by the few high rise buildings. The street itself represented the shift of societal focus. Toph herself walked barefoot on smooth cement while alleys to her left and right were unpaved and still dirt. The downtown district was what was truly booming, with nonstop construction and conversion to electricity occurring. Toph was very glad that she had set the headquarters of the Metal Bending Police where she had, right in the middle of everything.

Her stroll through the city took Toph about twenty minutes. She could have simply traveled via earth bending, but she would rather not have to deal with the idiots from the Transportation Department. At the docks, Toph bypassed the ferry and instead raised a pathway from the seabed of Yue Bay. About halfway through her stroll she had become rather impatient, nearly running to the docks and now had no patience to wait for the slow ferry to carry her to Air Temple Island. In a matter of minutes, Toph found herself on the Island with a rather tired Katara.

"Hey, Sugar Queen. Where's Twinkletoes?"

"He's putting the children to bed. Lin is welcome to stay over."

"You've put up with the brat all day and have your own to deal with, I'll take her."

"It's no problem,Toph, but seeing as you came all this way. Do you want anything to eat?" Katara and Toph were making their way through the courtyard.

"Nah. I really just want to get Lin home and in bed."

"I understand. It's been a long day, hasn't it?"

"You have no idea. All the lowlifes decided today was the day to commit some crimes. The reports were what kept me. I had some rookie doing the typing. It took forever to dictate them all." Toph sighed. "I'm sorry for not sending ahead that I'd be late." Katara, despite having heard the apology numerous times over the last several years, still found it a bit difficult to reconcile regretful and Toph.

"It's fine, Toph. You're the chief of police. I understand how busy you are, look who I'm married to. Besides, the kids always have fun." Toph smiled, giving her friend a "light tap" on the shoulder.

The women were laughing when they entered the men's dormitory some time later. Aang had just slid the door shut to one of the rooms and was gesturing frantically for his wife and friend to quiet down. Toph rolled her eyes and punched him when he approached.

"Momma!" Lin cried in a whisper from Aang's right, letting go of his hand to launch herself at Toph, who caught the four year old.

"Hey, kiddo. Ready to go home?" Lin nodded her head, wrapping her arms around Toph's neck, who held her easily. Aang chuckled quietly.

"Goodnight, Lin."

"Goodnight, Uncle Aang." She turned around briefly to hug the Avatar and her aunt. She was asleep before the trio of adults left the dormitories.

"Catch any bad guys today, Toph?" Aang asked as he and Katara were accompanying Toph back to her earth pathway. Toph proceeded to regale him with all of the impressive feats of bending and the idiocy of the criminals. Though the Avatar was now thirty-seven, he still reacted with childish enthusiasm, much to Katara's amusement. Toph felt much lighter as she carried her sleeping daughter back to their house only a block away from the police station.

Though Toph had been offered a much larger estate, Toph preferred her tiny home for its location and its size. The two bedroom home was constructed entirely of stone, allowing Toph clear sight at all times. Though Lin had her own bedroom, it had yet to be slept in as she much preferred, as did Toph, to sleep with her mother. Toph placed Lin's bag, which was always full of toys and a change of clothes, next to the bed after taking it off the slumbering child's shoulders. She tucked Lin in and kissed her forehead before changing out of the metal police uniform, stowing it away as quietly as possible. Afterwards, she eased herself on to the bed so as not to wake Lin.

The bed was no more than a mattress in a wooden box resting on the floor, but neither of its occupants minded. Toph had just settled in and placed her hand on the stone floor, a habit she had never grown out of after traveling around the world with the Avatar in her youth, when she felt a firm poke in the middle of her back. She rolled on to her other side, arching one eyebrow at the small child next to her. Lin now held something in her hand, but Toph could not quite place it.

"Momma, will you read me a story? Uncle Aang reads Kaya, Bumi, and Tenzin stories before they go to bed." It was clear now to Toph that Lin held a book. Toph felt a pang in her heart, a familiar but rarely felt pang. She wanted Lin to have a normal childhood, the same childhood Aang and Katara were giving their three children. For the most part, she was succeeding, but every once in a while, something like reading bedtime stories would come up and remind Toph that everything couldn't be normal because she was blind and her daughter wasn't.

Toph couldn't read, but that didn't mean she wasn't going to try her damndest to give her daughter a bedtime story. She took the book from Lin and opened it to what she hoped was the first page, but before she could start reading, Lin scooted closer, resting her head on her mother's shoulder, attempting to look at the book.

"What are you doing?"

"I want to see the pictures. Don't you think they're pretty?" Toph couldn't help but to smile as she moved the book so that Lin could see it. There was a bit of worry that Lin would figure out she couldn't read, but it wasn't like the four year old could read either.

"Yes, they're very pretty." Toph cleared her throat. "There once was a buffoon who loved his boomerang…" Lin started giggling, which made Toph grin, but the grin quickly fell when Lin spoke up.

"That's not what the story's about, Momma! Kya said this book is about the moose-lion cub and its mommy." Toph very nearly told Lin the truth, but instead jumped on an idea.

"Well, I don't really like this story, don't you want to hear about your Uncle Sokka's adventures?" Lin quickly forgot about the book and listened intently to her mother's story. Toph's quick thinking had avoided the issue of her inability to read, but she knew the trick wouldn't work twice. She also didn't want to trick her daughter again. She laid awake that night, struggling with her pride, but in the end her desire for her daughter to be happy won out.

The next morning, Toph dropped Lin off at Air Temple Island, where she spent most of her days while Toph worked. Lin ran off to play with her "cousins" the second they landed with barely a goodbye to her mother. Katara was surprised when Toph told the ferryman to wait as she stepped off the boat. Toph rarely spoke to her on the mornings Lin was dropped off, tending leave the moment the child was out of sight.

"Katara, can I talk to you?"

"Of course, Toph." Katara's interest as well as her concern was piqued. The women walked a bit away from the ferry, so as not to be overheard. Toph stared at her feet when they stopped, causing Katara's worry to spike. "What is it Toph? Is everything alright?"

"In the sense that you're thinking, yes. Last night, Lin asked for me to read her a bedtime story." Toph, who still held Lin's bag, pulled out a small book. Katara's hand had come up to cover her mouth.

"I am so sorry, Toph. I'll talk to Kya about this, that is her book."

"There's no reason for you to be sorry, Sweetness, and there's no reason to talk to Kya. I…I was wondering if you would teach Lin how to read. I can't read bedtime stories to her, but maybe she can read them to me." Katara gave Toph a watery smile before drawing her into a hug, which surprisingly, Toph returned.

"Of course I'll teach Lin how to read. Tenzin is still learning as well."

"Awesome. Another thing Lin can beat Tenzin at." Katara laughed, shaking her head, but decided not to comment.

That evening, Lin returned home bouncing with excitement about her Aunt Katara teaching her how to read. At bedtime, Toph told her another story about her adventures. For the next few weeks, Toph felt rather proud of herself for thinking of having Katara teach Lin how to read. She had never seen Lin so happy.

Lin came home from Air Temple Island one day, nearly vibrating. She said, with all the swagger she had inherited from Toph, that she could read all of Kya's book, but Tenzin couldn't. Toph couldn't remember a day where she had been more proud. At bedtime, Lin pulled out the book about the moose-lion and its mother and read in a loud, confident voice. She stuttered a few times over some of the words, but Toph didn't mind. Her daughter could read, she was already going to be better than her mother, and that's all Toph wanted.

The story was nearly over when Lin suddenly stopped mid-sentence. Toph felt her heartbeat pick up and her temperature increase, the tell-tale signs of embarrassment. Toph waited patiently for her daughter to calm down and continue, figuring she was just struggling a bit. When moments turned to minutes, Toph knew that something was wrong.

"What is it, shorty?"

"I don't know what this word is." Lin's voice was soft and tinged with shame.

"That's okay. Just skip over it."

"That's not how you read, Momma! And I can't really read the whole book if I don't know this word." Toph could tell that tears were on the horizon and wrapped an arm around the girl.

"There's nothing wrong with that. You'll learn it and then you'll be able to read the whole book." Lin nodded and then sat up as an idea struck her.

"It's l-o-v-e. What's that?" Toph sighed. She had to tell her daughter the truth, not that she had really lied to her about it.

"Lin, I'm blind. I can't see the word."

"I know, silly. That's why I spelled it out." Toph couldn't help but to chuckle at her daughter's thoughtfulness and lapse in logic.

"I don't know how to read, kiddo. I don't know letters or words and I can't spell."

"Aunt Katara could teach you!" Toph had to smile.

"No, she can't. You have to be able to see to read."

"Oh." Toph could practically hear Lin thinking. "Well, I'm going to be the best reader in the world so I can read enough for the both of us." A tear escaped Toph's control.

"Momma, why are you crying?"

"Because I love you so much, short stuff."

"I love you too, Momma." Toph held Lin close, her nose in the hair she had been told was identical to her own. Suddenly, Lin shot up, hitting the top her head on Toph's forehead, but she didn't notice. "That's it! The word is love!" It astounded Toph how very smart her daughter was.

"L-o-v-e?"

"See, Momma, you can spell."

When Lin entered her pre-teen years, Toph started to spend a lot more time at home, bringing work with her and having Lin type out reports while she dictated.

Lin read stories to Toph well into her teens, the ritual moving from their shared bedroom to the living room when Lin decided she wanted to sleep by herself.


End file.
